VANCOUVER – The U SPORTS No.7-ranked UBC Thunderbirds (12-4) bring their eight-match winning streak back to War Memorial Gym this weekend to take on the Manitoba Bisons (10-6) in the ‘Birds first home games since early December. The T-Birds and Bisons will square off after the schools’ women’s teams play each night, scheduled for roughly 7:45 p.m. (PT) on Friday and 6:45 p.m. (PT) on Saturday.
UBC is coming off of two potentially season-defining wins as the team took both halves of a back-to-back against the U SPORTS No.2-ranked Alberta Pandas in Edmonton, snatching first place in Canada West from the Pandas in the process. After mysteriously dropping out of the U SPORTS Top 10 amid a six-match winning streak, picking up their seventh and eight straight wins against over the then conference leader and still the second-ranked team in the country forced a major correction around the team’s national perception, pushing them up four spots to seventh.
“The weekend sweep against U of A was really big,” reflected UBC head coach Mike Hawkins. “I think more than anything it’s a bit of a barometer of where we’re at. Especially after being on the road for so long. Going from a California trip straight to Kelowna and then we had maybe three nights at home before Edmonton for an unexpectedly extended trip. That proved to be a challenge that we responded well to.”
T-Birds’ second year outside hitter Gavin Moes was named Canada West and U SPORTS Men’s Volleyball player of the week after picking up a combined 28 kills and 21 digs in the big wins at Alberta.
Moes, in his first year at UBC after transferring from Lethbridge College, is among several players who have grown into major roles on a team that has been forming a new identity throughout the season, following the departures of program stalwarts Michael Dowhaniuk and Matt Neaves. UBC has lost just once after starting the campaign 1-3, and now leads the conference in points per set, kills per set, assists per set and digs per set.
“Regardless of where we’re at in the standings, the rankings, whatever, the important thing for this group is that we keep moving forward day by day,” said Hawkins. “The season is long, it’s a marathon. Especially with a young group, you just have to go one step at a time.”
This weekend’s matchup with Manitoba continues a brutally difficult second half schedule for the ‘Birds, as each of their final five opponents is on track to be a playoff team and all are ranked 17th or better in the country. The Bisons are currently the lowest-ranked opponent the T-Birds have left, but they are no easy assignment. Prior to losing a pair of matches last weekend to U SPORTS No.7-ranked Trinity Western, Manitoba was riding a seven-game winning streak.
Last season, the ‘Birds and Bisons split a two-game series in Winnipeg, with each side winning one match 3-0.
While Manitoba’s attack numbers this year are pedestrian, their front row defence seems to be the strength of the team as the Bisons lead Canada West in block assists and total blocks.
“I think that how we respond this weekend will tell us a lot about where we’re at,” commented Hawkins. “I think it was easy getting up for the U of A game, just knowing that it was a top team and a team we knew that we needed to compete with.”
“Now that we’ve parked some of the chaotic travel, we’ve had to quickly get ready for a Manitoba team that has a lot of very talented players. We know they are where they are in the standings for a reason. On top of everything, they are probably featuring a new outside hitter who hasn’t been eligible up to this point. It’s going to provide an interesting test for us.”
Tickets to the T-Birds’ first home games since December 5 are still available here. Alternatively, stream any and all UBC volleyball action from this weekend live or on demand on Canada West TV.